Letters to the Editor: Don’t 86 dissent
Riverhead
Don’t 86 dissent
Re “Secret Service Flags Farmer” (July 16): I firmly, and proudly, stand with Douglas Cooper’s right to express his personal opinion by hanging an “86 47” sign over a flag during the July 4th holiday.
I, too, come from a long-standing moderate Republican family. However, I, my sibling and cousins all broke with the family’s political stance as a result of the deadly, costly and ultimately ineffective Vietnam War, resulting in some fractious discussions around the Thanksgiving table for years thereafter. But, regardless of differences, we all had a right to our own personal opinions, along with the right to express them.
On the East End today we see plenty of pro-Trump flags/banners on trucks and houses. Nobody from our government shows up at their homes to question their right to express an opinion. If I place a “Vote for (candidate’s name)” or a “Dump Trump” sign on my lawn, will the authorities show up at my home? I continue to believe that the age of “thought police” has not washed up on our shores … yet.
Whatever your opinions are, you still have the right to express them, but we all need to work together — left, right, center — to ensure that our democratic freedoms endure. And most importantly, express those opinions at the ballot box.
Linda Meise
Calverton
Get out and vote
Isn’t it strange that the only election Donald Trump thinks was rigged was the 2020 election that he lost when he was president? The two elections that he won under democratic presidents Obama and Biden he never questions.
The truth is that American elections are fair and trustworthy and we all need to vote this November. Tell Donald Trump and Nick LaLota that we’re tired of being lied to about elections, the war in Iran, the economy and immigration enforcement.
Jerry Silverstein
Riverhead
The rule of law
Representative Nick LaLota’s recent Guest Spot (July 23) contended that New York City residents “… left the city to build communities rooted in respect for the rule of law.” He then asked us to “imagine federal authorities conducting a lawful civil immigration operation … .” This does indeed [require] quite some imagination as federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities have repeatedly ignored the rule of law in their operations.
ICE has repeatedly attacked and shot bystanders and non-threatening suspects, frequently concocting stories that are inconsistent with video evidence and eyewitnesses. ICE has arrested and detained U.S. citizens. ICE detention centers routinely deny medical care to detainees and subject them to inhumane conditions.
ICE moves detainees between detention centers to thwart communications and visits by family members and friends. ICE has largely done this with impunity.
The actions are supported and endorsed by DHS, the president and, I presume, Mr. LaLota. Why should local law enforcement cooperate with ICE when ICE does not respect the rule of law?
David Jaffe
Aquebogue
Doomed to fail?
Last week, Town Board officials announced a closing of the Craft’d building sale and site plan approval is scheduled as early as Aug. 4 and 5. Whatever criticism and potential legal challenges there may be to the sale and the no-bid selection of a longtime GOP donor as master developer, it’s not clear the Town Square plans are thought through by the board.
The first glaring problem is lack of parking for hundreds of guests and patrons at Petrocelli’s hotel, made even more concerning given the CDA director’s stunning admission at the same meeting that there are no final plans for a parking garage, and no understanding of its costs and how it will be paid for. Moreover, there are many more pieces of the plans that are unresolved, such as the eminent domain seizure of the Science Center.
For now, the only benefit articulated for taxpayers appears to be a “splash pad” — more likely to end up as a bathing palace for downtown derelicts. And while we know Mr. Petrocelli has applied for IDA benefits, it’s not evident how parking jockeys, like chambermaids and bellhops for his hotels foster industry in our town.
Ronald Hariri
Riverhead
Questions for our leaders
Supervisor Jerry Halpin and council members Denise Merrifield, Joann Waski, Kenneth Rothwell and Robert Kern:
As a lifelong resident of Riverhead, I have three questions for each of you that I demand public yes or no answers to.
1) Do you intend to abide by your oath to the U.S. Constitution and represent all residents within the town’s geographic boundaries, regardless of their citizenship or legal immigration status?
2) Do you intend to take immediate steps to mitigate the fears of town residents being caused by ICE actions?
3) Do you intend to take immediate steps to address the safety concerns of town residents being caused by ICE actions?
Colin Tooker
Southold
Thanks, monarch lovers
On a beautiful Thursday afternoon, July 23, the ReWild North Fork chapter and Group for the East End held a Monarch Waystation Walk and Talk at the Native Garden at Custer Preserve. Many thanks to our volunteers who helped make this event such a success.
Participants were divided into groups that toured inside and outside the gated garden. Many questions, ideas and suggestions were raised and discussed pertaining to the establishment of Monarch Waystations, which provide the essential habitat for the complete life cycle of Monarch butterflies and other pollinators in decline across the U.S.
Since the Waystation was a collaborative affair, it was heartening to see Town Board members Brian Mealy, Alexis Suess and Kate Stevens, as well as Maggie Merrill, president of the Southold Peconic Civic. Visitors took home ideas of how they, too, can start small at home by creating healthy habitats, increasing native plant diversity, eliminating pesticides and encouraging nature to restore itself. Hoping to see more monarchs next year on the North Fork!
We also want to thank Times Review— online, social media, and in print — and other local journalists for promoting this event and for your fabulous coverage of our efforts.
Ralph Reinertsen and Nancy DePas Reinertsen, ReWild Long Island North Fork
Taralynn Reynolds, Group for the East End
Mattituck
Greenport Village parking
I am writing to express concerns regarding the Village of Greenport’s parking signage and its compliance with New York State requirements.
While the village has the authority to establish paid parking, it also has an obligation to ensure its parking regulations and signage comply with New York State law per their oath.
On July 8, I submitted a letter to the mayor, village Board of Trustees, and village Clerk requesting review and corrective action.
Under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law §1683(a)(8), parking restrictions are not enforceable unless adequate notice is provided through properly posted signs or markings. When restrictions apply only during certain hours or seasons, those conditions must be clearly stated.
New York has also adopted the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which requires regulatory signs to clearly communicate applicable restrictions. Missing operating hours or seasonal dates creates confusion and raises questions about enforceability.
This letter addresses only the omission of required hours and seasonal information and not other signage compliance issues.
Sharon Sailor
Cutchogue
Flaws in the right to farm
The right to farm has become a major topic of discussion. As a member of a family that farmed on the North Fork for 100 years, I know firsthand how deeply farmers love their land. When my family sold our development rights to Southold taxpayers, we did so with the promise that the land would be used strictly for farming.
Ten years ago, a businessman purchased my family’s former farmland and applied for site plan approval to build an industrial garage for a viticultural services company. The Southold Zoning Board of Appeals found that the proposed land use was not permitted by the zoning code, and the Planning Board denied the application. It was the right decision. However, last year the Planning Board approved a site plan application for essentially the same project, without providing any justification for changing its mind.
Now, on another farm where development rights were purchased by Southold taxpayers, a different businessman has applied for site plan approval to construct an egg processing building for a factory farm with 6,000 chickens.
Supervisor Krupski and the Planning Board are both failing to acknowledge reality: 6,000 chickens will damage the land and pollute the fresh air and precious fresh and salt waters that support our quality of life on the North Fork.
We all agree that farming must be profitable. Everyone also agrees that profits should come from sustainable healthy farms, not from industrial operations that operate at the expense of taxpayers and the natural environment.
The supervisor and the Planning Board claim the “right to farm” prevents the town from dictating how farmers operate. However, the actual responsibilities of the Town of Southold include ensuring that the right to farm laws are not misused as a slogan to shield destructive practices.
Nancy Sawastynowicz
Southold
Destruction and disgrace
As I sit on my deck, looking out on my backyard, enjoying the peacefulness and beauty of the surrounding woods, I wonder why anyone would by design destroy this development. The Southold Town Planning Board has set out to do just that.
The excuse that this is a “right to farm” community and the residents that have lived here for over 30 years must endure and live with this disgrace of a decision, is not just wrong but a dereliction of the role of the Planning Board. By segmenting the proposal and siting only a barn and not the farm as a whole, they have endeavored to bypass an environmental and traffic study. This is a callous disregard of the people of this development.
We are being forced to raise funds for a lawyer so that we can sue the town. The same town that designed this development, that placed it here, that told the residents to build your homes, improve your property so that 30 years later we can destroy it.
We did nothing wrong. We trusted the town to protect what we created. That is expecting no more and no less than any other citizen. The town expects us to accept the cackling of 6,000 chickens, a din equal to 6,000 people talking. We are to accept the odor, the rats, the mice, the flies and the traffic. We are to accept the destruction of our development for the cause of “right to farm.” This is a disgrace.
Please contribute to our GoFundMe page so we can right this terrible wrong: GoFundMe.com, Jasmine Lane, Southold, New York Legal Fund.
John Reichert
